1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to telecommunication services, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for routing an advanced intelligence network call to the appropriate carrier for call completion.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a number of new service features have been provided by an enhanced telephone network which has come to be called an Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN). In an AIN type system, local and/or toll offices of the public telephone network can detect one of a number of call processing events which are identified as AIN “triggers.” For an ordinary telephone service call there is no event that triggers AIN processing, and the local and toll office switches would function normally and process such calls without referring to the AIN database for instructions. When a central office detects a trigger, the call is suspended and a call data message is forwarded via a common channel inter-office signaling (CCIS) link to a service control point which includes a multi-services application platform (MSAP) database. If additional information is needed, the Service Control Point (SCP) can instruct the central office to obtain and forward additional information. Once sufficient information regarding the call has reached the SCP, the SCP accesses its stored data tables in the MSAP database to translate the received call data message into a call control message and then return the call control message to the central office via the CCIS link. The central office then uses the call control message to complete the particular call.
Recently, legislative and regulatory changes require the local exchange carrier (LEC) to unbundle certain network elements and services and offer use of those elements and services to other carriers for resale to end users. These changes have resulted in the necessity for more complex routing of telephone calls because more than one carrier can provide local and long distance service in any given geographic area. The introduction of multiple carriers into this market has resulted in greater complexity for AIN service logic programs in determining how an AIN call should be routed. The current AIN service logic does not have means for determining whether a call should be routed by the LEC, the IntraLATA carrier (LATA means Local Access and Transport Area) or the InterLATA carrier. This has resulted in customer complaints regarding erroneous billing for calls that were misrouted using current methods. Thus, there is a need for a method and apparatus for determining whether the carrier that is required for a particular AIN is the local exchange carrier (LEC), the IntraLATA carrier, or the Inter-LATA carrier.